U.S. patent number 7,213,735 [Application Number 11/378,182] was granted by the patent office on 2007-05-08 for staple-driving gun capable of ensuring attachment of a seal washer to a sleeve.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Panrex Industrial Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Chen-Ho Ou.
United States Patent |
7,213,735 |
Ou |
May 8, 2007 |
Staple-driving gun capable of ensuring attachment of a seal washer
to a sleeve
Abstract
A staple-driving gun includes a hollow housing configured with
first and second air chambers separated by a partition. A piston
unit includes an operating member connected fixedly to a sleeve
disposed movably in the first air chamber, and a piston rod
disposed movably in the sleeve. The operating member is operable so
as to move a valve end portion of the sleeve away from the
partition. Hence, compressed air flows from the first air chamber
into the second air chamber via a valve hole in the partition, and
an air-excluding passage constituted by a gap between the valve end
portion of the sleeve and an annular flange of a seal washer
mounted on the valve end portion of the sleeve, and an
air-excluding hole in the valve end portion of the sleeve so as to
urge the piston rod to move toward a staple-discharging member.
Inventors: |
Ou; Chen-Ho (Tai-Ping,
TW) |
Assignee: |
Panrex Industrial Co., Ltd.
(Tai-ping, Taichung Hsien, TW)
|
Family
ID: |
38000907 |
Appl.
No.: |
11/378,182 |
Filed: |
March 16, 2006 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
227/147; 227/107;
227/141; 227/148 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B25C
1/042 (20130101); B25C 7/00 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B25C
1/04 (20060101); B21J 15/34 (20060101) |
Field of
Search: |
;227/107,141,119,148,147 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Nash; Brian
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Lohse; Timothy W. DLA Piper US
LLP
Claims
I claim:
1. A staple-driving gun comprising: a gun body including a handle,
a hollow housing connected fixedly to said handle, and having first
and second open ends opposite to each other along an axis, said
housing being configured with an inner space and further having a
partition disposed fixedly in said inner space so as to divide said
inner space into a first air chamber disposed adjacent to said
first open end, and a second air chamber disposed adjacent to said
second open end, said partition being formed with a valve hole, the
axis extending through said valve hole in said partition, said
housing being formed with an air inlet in spatial communication
with said first air chamber for permitting compressed air to be fed
into said first air chamber therethrough, and a staple-discharging
member mounted on said second open end of said housing and formed
with a staple-discharging hole that extends along the axis; a
staple cartridge attached fixedly to said staple-discharging
member, and adapted to receive a row of staples so as to feed the
staples into said staple-discharging hole in said
staple-discharging member one at a time; and a piston unit
including a sleeve disposed in said first air chamber, movable
along the axis, and having a coupling end portion disposed movably
in said first open end of said housing, and an enlarged valve end
portion disposed movably in said second air chamber and having an
outer diameter larger than a diameter of said valve hole in said
partition, said valve end portion of said sleeve having an annular
outer surface formed with an annular engaging groove, and being
formed with an air-excluding hole in spatial communication with
said annular engaging groove, a seal washer sleeved on said valve
end portion of said sleeve in a close fitting manner and having an
inwardly extending annular flange that engages said annular
engaging groove in said valve end portion of said sleeve, an
operating member connected fixedly to said coupling end portion of
said sleeve, disposed outwardly of said housing, and movable along
the axis, and a hollow piston rod disposed movably in said sleeve
and having a diameter-increased first piston end that is in
slidable and sealing contact with said sleeve, a second piston end
that is opposite to said first piston end along the axis, that
extends outwardly of said sleeve, and that is disposed movably and
sealingly in said second air chamber, and an intermediate rod
portion disposed between and interconnecting said first and second
piston ends, said second piston end of said piston rod having a
fixed staple-striking piece that extends along the axis into said
staple-discharging hole in said staple-discharging member, said
operating member being operable so as to move said sleeve from a
standby position, where said seal washer is in sealing contact with
said partition and said valve end portion of said sleeve so as to
seal said valve hole in said partition such that flow of the
compressed air from said first air chamber into said second air
chamber through said valve hole in said partition is prevented, to
a staple-discharging position, where said valve end portion of said
sleeve is separated from said partition so as to allow flow of the
compressed air from said first air chamber into said second air
chamber through said valve hole in said partition such that the
compressed air flowing from said first air chamber into said second
air chamber via said valve hole in said partition urges said second
piston end of said piston rod to move toward said second open end
of said housing, thereby discharging one of the staples in said
staple-discharging hole in said staple-discharging member in
response to one strike of said staple-striking piece thereon,
wherein, when said sleeve is moved from the standby position to the
staple-discharging position, at least one portion of said annular
flange of said seal washer is removed from said annular engaging
groove in said valve end portion of said sleeve by the compressed
air flowing from said first air chamber into said second air
chamber, thereby forming a gap between said valve end portion of
said sleeve and said annular flange of said seal washer, said gap
being in spatial communication with and cooperating with said
air-excluding hole in said valve end portion of said sleeve so as
to constitute an air-excluding passage for excluding the compressed
air from said annular engaging groove in said valve end portion of
said sleeve.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a staple-driving gun, more particularly to
a staple-driving gun capable of ensuring attachment of a seal
washer to a sleeve.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional staple-driving gun is shown to
include a gun body 1, a staple cartridge 3, and a piston unit
2.
The gun body 1 includes a handle 102, a staple-discharging member
103 formed with a staple-discharging hole 1032 that extends along
an axis, and a hollow housing 101 connected fixedly to the handle
102 and having a first open end 1011, and a second open end 1012
opposite to the first open end 1011 along the axis and connected to
the staple-discharging member 103. The housing 101 is configured
with an inner surface that is divided into first and second air
chambers 105, 106 by a partition 104 that is disposed fixedly in
the housing 101 and that is formed with a valve hole 104'. The
housing 101 is formed with an air inlet 109 in spatial
communication with the first air chamber 105 for permitting
compressed air to be fed into the first air chamber 105
therethrough.
The staple cartridge 3 is attached fixedly to the
staple-discharging member 103, and is capable of receiving a row of
staples (not shown) so as to feed the staples into the
staple-discharging hole 1032 in the staple-discharging member 103
one at a time.
The piston unit 20 includes: a sleeve 201 disposed in the first air
chamber 15, and having a coupling end portion 205 disposed movably
in the first open end 1011 of the housing 101, and an enlarged
valve end portion 207 disposed movably in the second air chamber
106, having an outer diameter larger than a diameter of the valve
hole 104' in the partition 104, and having an annular outer surface
2071 formed with an annular engaging groove 2072; a seal washer 209
sleeved on the valve end portion 207 of the sleeve 201 in a close
fitting manner and having an inwardly extending annular flange 2091
that engages the annular engaging groove 2072 in the valve end
portion 207 of the sleeve 201; an operating member 206 connected
fixedly to the coupling end portion 205 of the sleeve 201, disposed
outwardly of the housing 101, and movable along the axis; and a
piston rod 202 disposed movably in the sleeve 202 and having a
diameter-increased first piston end 2021 that is in slidable and
sealing contact with the sleeve 201, and a second piston end 2022
opposite to the first piston end 2021 along the axis, extending
outwardly of the sleeve 201, and disposed movably and sealingly in
the second air chamber 106. The second piston end 2022 of the
piston rod 202 has a fixed staple-striking piece 204 that extends
along the axis into the staple-discharging hole 1032 in the
staple-discharging member 103.
The operating member 206 is operable so as to move the sleeve 201
from a standby position, where the seal washer 209 is in sealing
contact with the partition 104 so as to seal the valve hole 104' in
the partition 104 such that flow of the compressed air from the
first air chamber 105 into the second air chamber 106 through the
valve hole 104' in the partition 104 is prevented, as shown in FIG.
1, to a staple-discharging position, where the valve end portion
207 of the sleeve 201 is separated from the partition 104 so as to
allow flow of the compressed air from the first air chamber 105
into the second air chamber 106 through the valve hole 104' in the
partition 104 such that the compressed air flowing from the first
air chamber 105 into the second air chamber 106 via the valve hole
104' in the partition 104 urges the second piston end 2022 of the
piston rod 202 to move toward the second open end 1012 of the
housing 101, thereby discharging one of the staples in the
staple-discharging hole 1032 in the staple-discharging member 103
in response to one strike of the staple-striking piece 204 thereon,
as shown in FIG. 2.
It is noted that, when the sleeve 201 is moved from the standby
position to the staple-discharging position, the annular flange
2091 of the seal washer 209 is removed from the annular engaging
groove 2072 in the valve end portion 207 of the sleeve 201 by the
compressed air flowing from the first air chamber 105 into the
second air chamber 106, thereby resulting in deformation of the
seal washer 209, as best shown in FIG. 3. As such, after staple
discharging, the annular flange 2091 hardly restores to once again
engage the annular engaging groove 2072 in the valve end portion
207 of the sleeve 201 such that attachment of the seal washer 209
to the valve end portion 207 of the sleeve 201 cannot be
ensured.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a
staple-driving gun that is capable of ensuring attachment of a seal
washer to a sleeve.
According to the present invention, a staple-driving gun
comprises:
a gun body including a handle, a hollow housing connected fixedly
to the handle, and having first and second open ends opposite to
each other along an axis, the housing being configured with an
inner space and further having a partition disposed fixedly in the
inner space so as to divide the inner space into a first air
chamber disposed adjacent to the first open end, and a second air
chamber disposed adjacent to the second open end, the partition
being formed with a valve hole, the axis extending through the
valve hole in the partition, the housing being formed with an air
inlet in spatial communication with the first air chamber for
permitting compressed air to be fed into the first air chamber
therethrough, and a staple-discharging member mounted on the second
open end of the housing and formed with a staple-discharging hole
that extends along the axis;
a staple cartridge attached fixedly to the staple-discharging
member, and adapted to receive a row of staples so as to feed the
staples into the staple-discharging hole in the staple-discharging
member one at a time; and
a piston unit including a sleeve disposed in the first air chamber,
movable along the axis, and having a coupling end portion disposed
movably in the first open end of the housing, and an enlarged valve
end portion disposed movably in the second air chamber and having
an outer diameter larger than a diameter of the valve hole in the
partition, the valve end portion of the sleeve having an annular
outer surface formed with an annular engaging groove, and being
formed with an air-excluding hole in spatial communication with the
annular engaging groove, a seal washer sleeved on the valve end
portion of the sleeve in a close fitting manner and having an
inwardly extending annular flange that engages the annular engaging
groove in the valve end portion of the sleeve, an operating member
connected fixedly to the coupling end portion of the sleeve,
disposed outwardly of the housing, and movable along the axis, and
a hollow piston rod disposed movably in the sleeve and having a
diameter-increased first piston end that is in slidable and sealing
contact with the sleeve, a second piston end that is opposite to
the first piston end along the axis, that extends outwardly of the
sleeve, and that is disposed movably and sealingly in the second
air chamber, and an intermediate rod portion disposed between and
interconnecting the first and second piston ends, the second piston
end of the piston rod having a fixed staple-striking piece that
extends along the axis into the staple-discharging hole in the
staple-discharging member.
The operating member is operable so as to move the sleeve from a
standby position, where the seal washer is in sealing contact with
the partition and the valve end portion of the sleeve so as to seal
the valve hole in the partition such that flow of the compressed
air from the first air chamber into the second air chamber through
the valve hole in the partition is prevented, to a
staple-discharging position, where the valve end portion of the
sleeve is separated from the partition so as to allow flow of the
compressed air from the first air chamber into the second air
chamber through the valve hole in the partition such that the
compressed air flowing from the first air chamber into the second
air chamber via the valve hole in the partition urges the second
piston end of the piston rod to move toward the second open end of
the housing, thereby discharging one of the staples in the
staple-discharging hole in the staple-discharging member in
response to one strike of the staple-striking piece thereon.
When the sleeve is moved from the standby position to the
staple-discharging position, at least one portion of the annular
flange of the seal washer is removed from the annular engaging
groove in the valve end portion of the sleeve by the compressed air
flowing from the first air chamber into the second air chamber,
thereby forming a gap between the valve end portion of the sleeve
and the annular flange of the seal washer. The gap is in spatial
communication with and cooperates with the air-excluding hole in
the valve end portion of the sleeve so as to constitute an
air-excluding passage for excluding the compressed air from the
annular engaging groove in the valve end portion of the sleeve.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Other features and advantages of the present invention will become
apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred
embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings, of
which:
FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of a conventional
staple-driving gun;
FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view of the conventional
staple-driving gun when a sleeve is moved to a staple-discharging
position by a normal operation of an operating member;
FIG. 3 is a fragmentary schematic sectional view illustrating a
deformed seal washer sleeved on the sleeve of the conventional
staple-driving gun;
FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional view showing the preferred
embodiment of a staple-driving gun according to the present
invention;
FIG. 5 is a schematic sectional view showing the preferred
embodiment when a sleeve is moved to a staple-discharging
position;
FIG. 6 is a fragmentary schematic sectional view illustrating a
seal washer sleeved on the sleeve of the preferred embodiment;
and
FIG. 7 is a fragmentary schematic sectional view illustrating
deformation of the seal washer when the sleeve is in the
staple-discharging position.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring to FIG. 4, the preferred embodiment of a staple-driving
gun according to the present invention is shown to include a gun
body 10, a staple cartridge 30, and a piston unit 20.
The gun body 10 includes a handle 12, a hollow housing 11, and a
staple-discharging member 13.
The housing 11 is connected fixedly to the handle 12, and has first
and second open ends 111, 112 opposite to each other along an axis
(L). The housing 11 is configured with an inner space 17, and has a
partition 14 disposed fixedly in the inner space 17 and
perpendicular to the axis (L) so as to divide the inner space 17
into a first air chamber 15 disposed adjacent to the first open end
111, and a second air chamber 16 disposed adjacent to the second
open end 112. The partition 14 is formed with a valve hole 141. The
axis (L) extends through the valve hole 141 in the partition 14.
The housing 11 is formed with an air inlet 113 in spatial
communication with the first air chamber 15 for permitting
compressed air to be fed into the first air chamber 15
therethrough.
The staple-discharging member 13 is mounted on the second open end
112 of the housing 11, and is formed with a staple-discharging hole
132 that extends along the axis (L).
The staple cartridge 30 is attached fixedly to the
staple-discharging member 13, and is adapted to receive a row of
staples (not shown) so as to feed the staples into the
staple-discharging hole 132 in the staple-discharging member 13 one
at a time.
The piston unit 20 includes a sleeve 21, a seal washer 25, an
operating member 23, and a hollow piston rod 22.
The sleeve 21 is disposed in the first air chamber 15, and is
movable along the axis (L). The sleeve 21 has a coupling end
portion 211 disposed movably in the first open end 111 of the
housing 11, and an enlarged valve end portion 212 disposed movably
in the second air chamber 16 and having an outer diameter larger
than a diameter of the valve hole 141 in the partition 14. With
further reference to FIG. 6, the valve end portion 212 of the
sleeve 21 has an annular outer surface 2121 formed with an annular
engaging groove 2122, and is formed with an air-excluding hole 2123
in spatial communication with the annular engaging groove 2122. In
this embodiment, the sleeve 21 is formed with a plurality of air
guiding holes 213 disposed adjacent to the valve end portion 212.
The sleeve 21 further has a radially and inwardly extending
integral inward flange 214 that is disposed between the valve end
portion 212 and the air guiding holes 213.
The seal washer 25 is sleeved on the valve end portion 212 of the
sleeve 21 in a close fitting manner, and has an inwardly extending
annular flange 251 that engages the annular engaging groove 2122 in
the valve end portion 212 of the sleeve 21, as best shown in FIG.
6.
The operating member 23 is connected fixedly to the coupling end
portion 211 of the sleeve 21, is disposed outwardly of the housing
11, and is movable along the axis (L). In this embodiment, the
operating member 23 is formed with an air outlet 231.
The piston rod 22 is disposed movably in the sleeve 21, and has a
diameter-increased first piston end 221, a second piston end 222,
and an intermediate rod portion 223. The first piston end 221 of
the piston rod 22 is in slidable and sealing contact with the
sleeve 21. The second piston end 222 of the piston rod 22 is
opposite to the first piston end 221 along the axis (L), extends
outwardly of the sleeve 21, and is disposed movably and sealingly
in the second air chamber 16. The intermediate rod portion 223 of
the piston rod 22 is disposed between and interconnects the first
and second piston ends 221, 222, and is in slidable and sealing
contact with the inward flange 214 of the sleeve 21. The second
piston end 222 of the piston rod 22 has a fixed staple-striking
piece 24 that extends along the axis (L) into the
staple-discharging hole 132 in the staple-discharging member 13. In
this embodiment, the sleeve 21 cooperates with the piston rod 22 to
define a volume-changeable annular third air chamber 27 among the
inward flange 214 of the sleeve 21, and the first piston end 221
and the intermediate rod portion 223 of the piston rod 22. The air
guiding holes 213 in the sleeve 21 are in spatial communication
with the first and third air chambers 15, 27. In this embodiment,
the piston rod 22 defines an inner axial hole 220, and is formed
with a through hole 224 disposed adjacent to the second piston end
222 and in spatial communication with the inner axial hole 220. The
inner axial hole 220 has an open end 2201 formed in the first
piston end 221 of the piston rod 22, and a closed end 2202 disposed
adjacent to the second piston end 222 of the piston rod 22. The
through hole 224 and the inner axial hole 220 in the piston rod 22
cooperate with the air outlet 231 in the operating member 23 to
constitute an air discharging passage.
In use, the operating member 23 of the piston unit 20 is operable
so as to move the sleeve 21 from a standby position, where the seal
washer 25 is in sealing contact with the partition 14 and the valve
end portion 212 of the sleeve 21 so as to seal the valve hole 141
in the partition 14 such that flow of the compressed air from the
first air chamber 15 into the second air chamber 16 through the
valve hole 141 in the partition 14 is prevented, as shown in FIG.
4, to a staple-discharging position, where the valve end portion
212 of the sleeve 21 is separated from the partition 14 so as to
allow flow of the compressed air from the first air chamber 15 into
the second air chamber 16 through the valve hole 141 in the
partition 14 such that the compressed air flowing from the first
air chamber 15 into the second air chamber 16 via the valve hole
141 in the partition 14 urges the second piston end 222 of the
piston rod 22 of the piston unit 20 to move toward the second open
end 112 of the housing 11, thereby discharging one of the staples
in the staple-discharging hole 132 in the staple-discharging member
13 in response to one strike of the staple-striking piece 24
thereon, as shown in FIG. 5. Thereafter, the compressed air in the
second air chamber 16 is discharged to the outside via the
air-discharging passage, and simultaneously, the compressed air
flowing from the first air chamber 15 into the third air chamber 27
via the air guiding holes 213 in the sleeve 21 urges the first
piston end 221 of the piston rod 22 toward the first open end 111
of the housing 11.
It is noted that, when the sleeve 21 is moved from the standby
position to the staple-discharging position, at least one portion
of the annular flange 251 of the seal washer 25 is removed from the
annular engaging groove 2122 in the valve end portion 212 of the
sleeve 21 by the compressed air flowing from the first air chamber
15 into the second air chamber 16, thereby forming a gap 2124
between the valve end portion 212 of the sleeve 21 and the annular
flange 251 of the seal flange 25, as best shown in FIG. 7. In this
case, the gap 2124 is in spatial communication with and cooperates
with the air-excluding hole 2123 in the valve end portion 212 of
the sleeve 21 so as to constitute an air-excluding passage for
excluding the compressed air from the annular engaging groove 2122
in the valve end portion 212 of the sleeve 21.
As such, due to the presence of the air-excluding hole 2123 in the
valve end portion 212 of the sleeve 21, the compressed air in the
annular engaging groove 2122 in the valve end portion 212 of the
sleeve 21 can be effectively excluded such that the annular flange
251 of the seal washer 25 can be easily restored to engage the
annular engaging groove 2122 in the valve end portion 212 of the
sleeve 21 when the sleeve 21 is moved from the staple-discharging
position back to the standby position. In view of this, deformation
of the seal washer 25 occurring in the aforesaid conventional
staple-driving gun can be avoided even after a long period of use,
thereby ensuring attachment of the seal washer 25 to the valve end
portion 212 of the sleeve 21.
While the present invention has been described in connection with
what is considered the most practical and preferred embodiment, it
is understood that this invention is not limited to the disclosed
embodiment but is intended to cover various arrangements included
within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to
encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements.
* * * * *